Two former Parramatta Eels players are accused of harbouring semi-automatic weapons and possessing more than half-a-million dollars in cash after dramatic arrests in Sydney's Centennial Park yesterday.

PBO doles out some budget advice

The Parliamentary Budget Office was set up to provide independent advice to non-government parties that don't have Treasury number-crunchers casting an expert eye over policies.

Before the office was set up in 2012, the opposition and independents had to rely on accountants and auditors they sought out themselves.

The PBO, which has been led by a former senior member of the Department of Finance since its formation, also frequently provides analyses on what hurdles the budget faces from government policies.

It released two such reports this week, and each contains some surprising results.

The first report is a regular look at the real state of the budget when taking into account government policies either stuck in the Senate or yet to be introduced to parliament, which are factored in as if they are a done deal.

Based on December's mid-year budget review, the PBO calculates there is $8.5 billion worth of unlegislated bills, some stretching back to the Abbott government's first and poorly received 2014 budget.

Should those bills remain in the pending tray, their budget impact balloons to $42.8 billion in 10 years time.

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Coincidentally or not, the day after this report was released the government packaged some of this legislation - or zombie bills, as Labor likes to label them - into a new omnibus bill with net savings of more than $4 billion.

It contains 18 measures with an overall aim of either cutting or reconfiguring family welfare payments while providing additional funding for child care.

The government was successful in getting a similar $6 billion omnibus savings bill through the parliament last year with the help of Labor.

This time, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull looks like having to rely on the Senate crossbench - a pool that just got bigger this week after Cory Bernardi resigned from the Liberals to set up his own conservative party.

The second PBO report found that if the government were to put off dipping into the Future Fund by just four years, the balance would be sufficient to cover its public servant superannuation liabilities until 2100.

But should it start drawing down from the fund in 2020/21, as legislated when it was formed in 2006 and factored into budget projections, it would be exhausted by 2053/54.

By delaying drawdowns until 2024/25, the PBO reckons the Future Fund would maintain an ongoing positive balance until the unfunded superannuation liability arising from the now-closed civilian and military schemes are largely extinguished in about 2100.

The analysis is based on the Future Fund continuing to achieve a target return of CPI plus five per cent, the government making no more contributions to the fund, and superannuation liabilities peaking at $283.5 billion in 2040/41.

The Future Fund was set up by former treasurer Peter Costello, who is now chairman of the fund.

The fund stood at $127.66 billion as of December 2016, adding returns of over $67 billion to the $60.5 billion of original government contributions made by Costello.

Delivering an update on the latest performance of the fund last week, Costello warned the government about draining what is an asset on the books of the commonwealth.

He said drawdowns of $8 billion to $9 billion would quickly exhaust the fund and weaken the nation's balance sheet.

"If you want to wind it up and spend the money, don't think that you will be in a better position," he said.